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Category Archives: Views from abroad
Battle of the dinosaurs
Metric Views marks the end of 2011 by drawing attention to a recent exchange of letters in the Irish Times, one looking backwards, the other with a message to take into 2012.
Outlines of Pacific trade deal announced
On 12 November, Voice of America reported as follows: “President Barack Obama has announced that the United States and eight other Pacific nations have reached the broad outlines of an agreement to create a Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) to liberalize trade.
Pound-inch units finally give way to metric in space
It looks as if astronauts, cosmonauts, or yuhangyuan as we will soon learn to call them, will before long have to cope with only one measurement system in space as the US winds down its programme and China takes its … Continue reading
A very Caribbean muddle
Metric Views has received news on the progress of metrication in the Caribbean.
Remarks by Eric Schmidt throw up a paradox
The executive chairman of Google remarked recently that Britain needs to “bring arts and science back together”. But the USA, where he is based, is the most backward country in the world for sharing of measurement units between scientists and … Continue reading
Posted in Education, General, Science, Views from abroad
Tagged Google, innovation, metric, Schmidt, science
5 Comments
Eurocodes for structural design, and that decimal marker
Britain is currently adopting European codes for structural design and allowing British Standard codes to lapse. This raises the issue of the preferred decimal marker – should imperial or continental practice be followed?
Posted in Education, General, Technical, Views from abroad
Tagged decimal-marker, Eurocodes, style-guide, thousands-marker
10 Comments
A bit of imperial history
Recent comments on the value, or otherwise, of retaining historic or traditional measurements in daily use have prompted thoughts on the swift rise of the imperial system of measures in the nineteenth century and on the muddle that has resulted from … Continue reading
Posted in History, Views from abroad
Tagged British Empire, imperial measures, imperial trade
7 Comments
An opportunity for savings overlooked in the comprehensive spending review
In the comprehensive spending review (CSR) there was much talk of making changes to underpin a competitive economy, to put public services on a sustainable footing, fit for a modern age, and to prioritise those areas of public spending which … Continue reading
Posted in General, Transport, Views from abroad
Tagged comprehensive spending review, metric changeover
3 Comments
10-10-10. A reason for celebration
For many in Britain, the metric system and decimal measures are the same. Sunday’s once-in-a-century date provides an opportunity to consider the link between the two.
Posted in Education, General, History, Technical, Views from abroad
Tagged decimal, mesures-usuelles, metric, rational-system, USA
24 Comments
URS buys Scott Wilson. So what?
The UK’s twelfth largest consultancy by turnover, Scott Wilson, has been bought by the US design firm URS for £218 million. URS is second in the ‘Engineering News Record’ list of top 500 design firms. Metric Views speculates that Scott … Continue reading